Program Operations Manual System (POMS)

A. General

Trust lands on Indian reservations listed below are excluded from countable resources.
Nontrust lands located within the boundaries of the reservation are not covered by
this exclusion provision.

2.

The exclusion from resources must be developed whenever the application or redetermination
indicates the individual has an ownership in trust land.

B. Development

1.

Ownership of the trust land is usually a good indicator that the owner has income
from the leasing of the land, mineral rights, timber, or oil. Development of the lease
income is required by POMS SI 00830.850.

2.

Verification of the lease income coupled with the individual's allegation that the
income is derived from trust land located on the reservations listed below will satisfy
the trust land exclusion requirements.

3.

Note that income from trust land is not always paid through IIM accounts. Direct lease
payments are sometimes arranged, particularly on large parcels of land. In that case
verification of trust land status may be verified through the leasee or the Census
and Realty Board. The latter source can also be used to verify ownership if there
is no lease income. This occasionally occurs when a lease agreement is cancelled or
has expired and a new agreement has not yet been negotiated.

C. Exclusion of trust land

Trust lands or interests in trust lands owned by Indians on the following reservations
may not be conveyed by sale, gift, or exchange without the approval of the Secretary
of the Interior or his/her duly appointed representative. This exclusion includes
real property improvements to the trust land.